May 2016

  • Book Bingo: Memoirs

    Join The Seattle Public Library and Seattle Arts & Lectures for our 2nd annual Summer Book Bingo for adults! Follow us throughout the summer for reading suggestions based on each category. From gossipy tell-alls to the extraordinary lives of ordinary individuals, the popularity of memoirs endure. Here are some memoirs to consider for Book Bingo – and… Continue reading

  • Language Learning Resources for Children

    Learning another language is not just for adults who want to travel. When children learn another language they improve their vocabulary and cognitive ability, so it is no wonder many parents are now starting their kids off young. Even just learning a few words can be useful. There are many fun and easy ways to… Continue reading

  • Bus Reads for May

    The commute from hell? Hardly. Here are some titles that have turned my long bus commute into reading heaven. The Unraveling of Mercy Louis by Keija Parssinen; when you are the star of a basketball team in a small town all eyes are on you, that’s the case for Mercy Louis. However successful she may… Continue reading

  • Wheedle’s Groove: Seattle’s Forgotten Soul of the 1960s and ’70s

    On June 2nd, as a part of the African American Film Series, we will be screening the documentary Wheedle’s Groove: Seattle’s Forgotten Soul of the 1960s and ’70s. This documentary, directed by Jennifer Maas, and distributed by local record label Light in the Attic Records, captures some of the heyday of Seattle’s soul, funk and R & B that… Continue reading

  • Book Bingo: #WeNeedDiverseBooks

    Join The Seattle Public Library and Seattle Arts & Lectures for our 2nd annual Summer Book Bingo for adults! Follow us throughout the summer for reading suggestions based on each category. The #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign launched in April 2014 by calling out the lack of diverse narratives in children’s literature. This grassroots effort advocates for essential changes in the publishing… Continue reading

  • Life in the City: Unique Perspectives on Urban Living

    It’s no secret that Seattle is going through a boom. For some of us, it’s an exhilarating time as we build housing and transit on our way to becoming a vibrant and diverse first-class city. For others, it’s an overwhelming period where we yearn for less congestion, greater civic pride, and the simpler, less-bustling days of… Continue reading

  • It’s back: Summer Book Bingo!

    Are you ready to play along with the most fabulous adult summer reading program around? Great — because today Seattle Arts & Lectures and Seattle Public Library launch Summer Book Bingo, the 2016 edition! Pick one up at any of our Libraries or download this PDF of the Book Bingo card. Here’s a brief rundown… Continue reading

  • A Plethora of Language Learning Resources

    Have you decided what language you want to learn? If you missed our first post on language learning and want advice on how to decide which language to learn then click here. If you already know which language you want to learn then let’s jump right in. The majority of language learners are doing it for… Continue reading

  • Hey, our pick for the Dublin Literary Award made the shortlist!

    Do you follow the International Dublin Literary Awards? Here’s why you should: Public libraries around the world nominate books for the award, and you love public libraries. A healthy mix of U.S. and international novels make both the longlist and the shortlist, and you’ve been looking for suggestions for some of the best international fiction.… Continue reading

  • 5 Ways the LGBT Business Builder can Help Grow Your Small Business

    The LGBT Business Builder, the historic new partnership between the National Gay & Lesbian Chamber of Commerce (NGLCC) and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), is a powerful tool to strengthen the LGBT Business Community at both the local and national level. And it’s coming to the Central Library on Thursday, June 2nd! Here are 5… Continue reading

  • Resources for Learning Another Language

      Have you ever thought about learning another language? Are you interested but not sure where to start? Overwhelmed by the options and not sure what would work best for you? If you answered yes to any of these questions then this series of posts is for you. Learning a second (or third or fourth) language… Continue reading

  • Seattle Reads: An interview with author Karen Joy Fowler

    This interview originally appeared in The American Reader. Reprinted with permission of Carmen Maria Machado for our 2016 Seattle Reads celebration featuring Karen Joy Fowler’s We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves. Events with Ms. Fowler run Friday through Sunday, May 20-22, at six Seattle library locations.  Last summer, Karen Joy Fowler made me cry. On… Continue reading

  • Bike Everywhere Day with Books on Bikes!

    How is your Bike to Work Month going? At the Library, we’re bike enthusiasts all the time. Perhaps you’ve heard about our Books on Bikes program. We can thank Jared Mills and Linda Johns for initiating this grant-funded pilot program in 2013, setting up customized trailers and a special collection of library materials of 400 popular… Continue reading

  • 5 Novels for Asian Pacific American Heritage Month

    There are so many good books written by Asian American and Pacific Islander authors, and to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month we would love to connect you to a few recently published novels. Continue reading

  • There’s a new New Yorker waiting for me …

    Most of the email I receive outside of work goes unopened. But not this one: I immediately click through to check out the newest edition of The New Yorker via Zinio, a service Seattle Public Library offers for free with a Library card. I open my iPad’s Zinio app, refresh my “library” — and there it is. Continue reading

  • Weird and Wonderful Nonfiction

    Have you read up on bog bodies and tripe? Are you caught up on clothing that kills and bad clowns? If so, here’s another group of wonderfully weird nonfiction. Goatman: How I Took a Holiday from being Human follows Thomas Thwaites as he dons a goat exoskeleton and lives among a herd of goats in the… Continue reading

  • May is National Bike Month!

    “Get a bicycle. You will not regret it if you live.” – Mark Twain, Taming the Bicycle Whether you are an experienced cyclist or beginner, now is a good time to re-commit to Pedal Power. Perhaps you want more exercise. Perhaps you feel guilty with your greenhouse gas emissions. Perhaps you want to know Seattle… Continue reading

  • Beyond the Screen: Free Angela and All Political Prisoners

    As a part of the African American Film Series this year, librarians have created some amazing resource lists that can help you take your understanding of the people, places, times and themes these films bring to life beyond the screen. For Douglass-Truth’s upcoming screening of the documentary Free Angela and All Political Prisoners, on Sunday,… Continue reading